This application claims the priority of Korean Patent Application No. 2002-52825, filed Sep. 6, 2002, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for measuring power and, more particularly, to an apparatus for measuring, in real-time, and indicating power consumption of a product using a switching mode power supply (SMPS).
2. Description of the Related Art
Power consumption is a quantitative indication of the ratio of how much energy is consumed or how much work is done per unit of time, and indicates the amount of energy supplied or consumed in a unit second. An energy consumption efficiency grade of a product varies in accordance with the consumption power, and a low-grade product wastes energy during the entire life of the product. Therefore, it is desirable to confirm the energy consumption efficiency grade and purchase a higher-grade product if possible.
As an understanding of energy savings has recently become higher, various products now have a power saving function and keep the power consumption below a certain level even during normal operation. However, it would be highly desirable to indicate actual power consumption of a product while the product is in use. Displaying the actual power consumption has not been considered due to the complexity of a circuit needed to implement such a function and cost. Accordingly, the actual power consumption of a product has been measured in the product development stage using a separate measuring device. Further, consumers have not had a way to know the actual power consumption of a currently used product other than the maximum power consumption stated in the product manual or on a label attached to the product. However, as the consumers' understanding of energy saving functions and efficiencies have gradually changed, a need has arisen to provide a function for measuring, in real-time, and indicating the power consumption of a product while the product is in use.